The SEC and FINRA may cause regional centers to exit the EB-5 visa program.

About 6 weeks ago, I'd predicted that regional centers are unnecessarily working towards trying to get an extension in the EB-5 visa program when securities regulators were anyway going to shut them down for securities law violations and securities fraud, and 2 days ago, I read the news release by FINRA at https://www.finra.org/industry/rule-filings/sr-finra-2014-037, which states that under FINRA rule 2040,  regional centers will HAVE to make FULL Disclosure of Finder's Fee payments to Foreign Agent if they're using broker dealers. If regional centers are directly marketing and selling securities through unlicensed agents, they may face even more enforcement actions.

So, in effect, regional centers can't operate anymore and they'll be wasting their time if they are still bothering to fight for extension of regional centers in the EB-5 visa program, as the SEC and FINRA have made it practically impossible for regional centers to LEGALLY offer and sell securities within and outside the US.

The question is, will regional centers try to continue the illegal offering and sale of securities or will they simply shut down and exit the EB-5 visa program?

In a nutshell, now the major problem for regional centers is that NONE of their foreign agents will want the payments made by regional centers to them to be disclosed BECAUSE these records can and will be used to prosecute them for tax evasion and illegal offering of securities.

So, if Mr. Ajmera or Mr. Advani in India or Ms. Sarkar or Ms. Malik in the UAE are ILLEGALLY marketing and selling regional center securities in India and the UAE respectively WITHOUT getting prior approval from Indian and Emirates regulators, they will be exposed to criminal charges in those countries for illegally offering and selling securities AND committing securities fraud, when these payments are disclosed.

As such, regional centers can either REFUSE to disclose their payments to migration agents and risk prosecution OR continue to commit securities fraud and violate securities laws, as ALL issuers of securities are now required to disclose to investors the amount of fees paid to foreign agents (finders) and receive written acknowledgement from the investors of  the fees paid. A document disclosing the total compensation paid by the issuer to the finder, and each investor's acknowledgement of the same, must be retained by the securities issuer (such as a regional center) and made available for inspection by FINRA.

This regulation WILL transform the regional center industry from one of non-disclosure and fraud to a transparent and less fraudulent industry if complied with. The BIG question is, will Regional Centers actually comply with this new regulation?

The fact is. none of the overseas agents wish to disclose how much compensation they are getting from Regional Centers, which ranges from $30,000 to over $220,000 per investor (6-44%+ brokerage fee for a $500,000 investment) when the upfront administrative (JUNK) and commission percentage fees are combined. These huge commission payments are THE NUMBER ONE REASON that regional centers are unable to profitably generate 10 jobs and also the biggest reason that most investors in regional centers experience capital losses.

EB-5 visa investors need to remember that the ONLY safe way to get a permanent green card in the EB-5 visa category is by investing in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses. At present, there is very little chance of either of the regional center extension bills being written into law due to stiff Congressional and law enforcement opposition.

Some of the important reasons that EB-5 visa investors should ALWAYS choose Genuine Direct Investment Businesses and avoid regional centers are:

1.    In a Genuine Direct Investment Business, it is quite unusual to encounter fraud or conflict of interest. This alone is THE biggest reason why EB-5 visa investors usually experience capital loss if they opt for regional centers or unsafe Direct Investments (such as Voodoo BBQ or Marcos Pizza), while those who opt for Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually NEVER experience capital loss.

2.    EB-5 visa investors who choose Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually earn annual ROI of 15% to 40%, while those who select regional centers usually earn 0-2% annual ROI.

3.  Genuine Direct Investment Businesses offer easy exit strategies to EB-5 visa investors while those who invest in regional centers see TERRIBLE exit strategies.

4.    Regional Centers usually commit securities fraud and securities law violations while this is usually unheard of in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses.

5.    EB-5 visa investors usually get capital gains if they invest in a Genuine Direct Investment Business and almost NEVER get capital gains if they invest in a regional center.

6.    EB-5 visa investors in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually see faster processing and approval of their petitions, while it takes much longer for EB-5 visa investors to get their immigrant visa through regional centers.

7.    EB-5 visa investors in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses have a higher chance of getting their permanent green card, while those who opt for regional centers have a lower chance of getting their green card. 

If you are a business owner or high net worth individual interested in migrating to the US without getting cheated, please contact us for a free consultation as we offer a guarantee of freedom from fraud and conflict of interest.

We offer a turnkey solution and have a 100% fee refund guarantee if a client is denied due to our negligence or incompetence.

For more information, please contact: 

Mohammed Shaikh, MBA (Accounting), CFE, Licensed Business & RE Broker (CA & FL) 

Phone: +1 407 535 0616
Online: http://www.smartbusinessbroker.com

EB-5 visa investors who chose regional centers are seeing an increasing number of denials of their I-526 petitions.

The latest figures that are soon to be released by the USCIS are expected to show an increase in the number of denials due to a failure to create jobs, fraud and source of funds issues, due to the increasing scrutiny of EB-5 visa investor applications.

It is also believed that regional centers won't exist in the EB-5 visa program as of October 1st 2015, due to which a whole bunch of EB-5 visa investors may potentially end up seeing their petitions denied by USCIS.

It is undeniable that Regional centers offer measly returns and don't create as many jobs as direct investment jobs. The fact is, more investors are now attracted to the Direct Investment category to apply for an EB-5 visa, especially when they realize that it is actually very easy to earn solid profits while getting a green card under EB-5 visa.

As a Business Broker and Adviser, it is my job to help my clients create those jobs in a profitable manner in order to help them get their green cards PROFITABLY and SAFELY, because I benefit only if my clients benefit.

EB-5 visa investors need to remember that the ONLY safe way to get a permanent green card in the EB-5 visa category is by investing in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses. At present, there is very little chance of either of the regional center extension bills being written into law due to stiff Congressional and law enforcement opposition.

Some of the important reasons that EB-5 visa investors should ALWAYS choose Genuine Direct Investment Businesses and avoid regional centers are:

1.    In a Genuine Direct Investment Business, it is quite unusual to encounter fraud or conflict of interest. This alone is THE biggest reason why EB-5 visa investors usually experience capital loss if they opt for regional centers or unsafe Direct Investments (such as Voodoo BBQ or Marcos Pizza), while those who opt for Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually NEVER experience capital loss.

2.    EB-5 visa investors who choose Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually earn annual ROI of 15% to 40%, while those who select regional centers usually earn 0-2% annual ROI.

3.  Genuine Direct Investment Businesses offer easy exit strategies to EB-5 visa investors while those who invest in regional centers see TERRIBLE exit strategies.

4.    Regional Centers usually commit securities fraud and securities law violations while this is usually unheard of in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses.

5.    EB-5 visa investors usually get capital gains if they invest in a Genuine Direct Investment Business and almost NEVER get capital gains if they invest in a regional center.

6.    EB-5 visa investors in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually see faster processing and approval of their petitions, while it takes much longer for EB-5 visa investors to get their immigrant visa through regional centers.

7.    EB-5 visa investors in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses have a higher chance of getting their permanent green card, while those who opt for regional centers have a lower chance of getting their green card. 

If you are a business owner or high net worth individual interested in migrating to the US without getting cheated, please contact us for a free consultation as we offer a guarantee of freedom from fraud and conflict of interest.

We offer a turnkey solution and have a 100% fee refund guarantee if a client is denied due to our negligence or incompetence.

For more information, please contact: 

Mohammed Shaikh, MBA (Accounting), CFE, Licensed Business & RE Broker (CA & FL) 

Phone: +1 407 535 0616
Online: http://www.smartbusinessbroker.com

 

Is Attorney Klasko actually familiar with the true state of affairs about the regional center renewal in the EB-5 visa category?

Is Mr. Ron Klasko actually presenting an accurate picture about the state of the regional center or is he being misled?

I just read an article by Attorney Klasko that made laugh out loud (see http://discuss.ilw.com/content.php?4885-Article-Update-on-EB-5-Legislation-By-H-Ronald-Klasko )

Mr. Klasko claims " The chances of the regional center EB-5 program being extended are exceedingly high. There are no significant forces who are attempting to have the program sunset." There actually IS significant resistance to the extension of regional centers in the EB-5 visa program, so I'm unsure why he thinks otherwise. An ICE memo clearly recommends that the regional center program be shut down altogether and too many politicians owe a lot to law enforcement and intelligence agencies and executives, due to which contrary to what Mr. Klasko assumes, there actually IS significant opposition to a renewal of the regional center program. 

The fact is, if the chances were "exceedingly high" as claimed by Attorney Klasko, maybe he can explain WHY has the regional center industry been unable to get an extension of the regional center program in the EB-5 visa category since 2014? 

Attorney Klasko obviously has a vested commercial interest in trying to prevent panic from setting in among EB-5 visa investors and regional centers, even if it is with clearly inaccurate "beliefs" that are proven wrong not by my statements but by events. If there was no significant opposition, then WHAT were ICE and Senator Grassley and Corker doing? Are they insignificant? Or is it that Attorney Klasko missed the famous ICE memo recommending that regional centers be shut down? If chances of renewal were exceedingly high, WHY is it that Polis and Lofgren failed to gain traction and now Goodlatte is also going to make a Quixotic and desperate last ditch attempt to save the regional center industry from being shut down due to fraud, conflict of interest and money laundering?

If I can accurately predict the contents of the GAO report 6 months in advance as well as the failure of the bills introduced by Polis and Lofgren, I believe I can also predict with a fair amount of certainty that the proposed Goodlatte backed bill will probably fail in the same way simply because there are significant unaddressed concerns about fraud and money laundering by regional centers in the law enforcement and intelligence communities, and the GAO audit report only makes the situation worse. So, it is quite likely that Mr. Klasko is unfamiliar with actual ground realities when he thinks that "it is very likely to be a bill to be introduced by Republican Congressman Issa, with co-sponsorship by House Judiciary Committee Chair Goodlatte and probably some Democratic co-sponsorship (Congressman Polis and Congresswoman Lofgren being the most likely candidates)." has ANY chance of success. 

If Polis with 22 co-sponsors couldn't do anything for 2 years in a row, then obviously neither can Goodlatte with less than a month of horse trading.

 Mr. Klasko thinks that "The strategy will be to have the bill be noncontroversial enough and streamlined enough that it will stand a reasonably good chance of receiving unanimous consent in both the House and the Senate. This would be somewhere between unlikely and impossible with a bill of the size and scope of the Grassley-Leahy Bill. In order to accomplish this result, the drafters of the House bill are working with key members in the Senate to ensure that any bill that passes in the House will likely pass the Senate by unanimous consent." 

The problem is, when you have law enforcement and intelligence agencies on one side and MAJA on the other and the amount of time being very little, the odds for a regional center renewal are practically non-existent.

 It is undeniable that Regional centers offer measly returns and don't create as many jobs as direct investment jobs. The fact is, more investors are now attracted to the Direct Investment category to apply for an EB-5 visa, especially when they realize that it is actually very easy to earn solid profits while getting a green card under EB-5 visa. More importantly, the US economy will benefit significantly if the EB-5 visa program only has direct investments, as the investor has to create 10 jobs in order to prove eligibility to stay or alternatively preserve 10 jobs in a failing business.

As a Business Broker and Adviser, it is my job to help my clients create those jobs in a profitable manner in order to help them get their green cards PROFITABLY and SAFELY, because I benefit only if my clients benefit.

EB-5 visa investors need to remember that the ONLY safe way to get a permanent green card in the EB-5 visa category is by investing in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses. At present, there is very little chance of either of the regional center extension bills being written into law due to stiff Congressional and law enforcement opposition.

Some of the important reasons that EB-5 visa investors should ALWAYS choose Genuine Direct Investment Businesses and avoid regional centers are:

1.    In a Genuine Direct Investment Business, it is quite unusual to encounter fraud or conflict of interest. This alone is THE biggest reason why EB-5 visa investors usually experience capital loss if they opt for regional centers or unsafe Direct Investments (such as Voodoo BBQ or Marcos Pizza), while those who opt for Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually NEVER experience capital loss.

2.    EB-5 visa investors who choose Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually earn annual ROI of 15% to 40%, while those who select regional centers usually earn 0-2% annual ROI.

3.  Genuine Direct Investment Businesses offer easy exit strategies to EB-5 visa investors while those who invest in regional centers see TERRIBLE exit strategies.

4.    Regional Centers usually commit securities fraud and securities law violations while this is usually unheard of in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses.

5.    EB-5 visa investors usually get capital gains if they invest in a Genuine Direct Investment Business and almost NEVER get capital gains if they invest in a regional center.

6.    EB-5 visa investors in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually see faster processing and approval of their petitions, while it takes much longer for EB-5 visa investors to get their immigrant visa through regional centers.

7.    EB-5 visa investors in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses have a higher chance of getting their permanent green card, while those who opt for regional centers have a lower chance of getting their green card. 

If you are a business owner or high net worth individual interested in migrating to the US without getting cheated, please contact us for a free consultation.

We offer a turnkey solution and have a 100% fee refund guarantee if a client is denied due to our negligence or incompetence.

For more information, please contact: 

Mohammed Shaikh, Licensed Business & RE Broker (CA & FL) 

Phone: +1 407 535 0616
Online: http://www.smartbusinessbroker.com

Will the expiration of the regional center program in the EB-5 visa category cause foreign investments to dry up? Or will it actually create MORE jobs?

I laughed really hard when I read this article by Jeffrey DeBoer (see link http://businessfacilities.com/2015/08/reform-reauthorization-of-eb-5-investment-program-urged/) because he seems to have his facts WRONG.

Mr. DeBoer falsely claims that "The U.S. will lose an estimated $6.8 billion in foreign investment dollars if the EB-5 regional center program is not reauthorized by September 30. (Based on the 13,663 pending EB-5 petitions as reported by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services at the end of FY’2015 Q2; assumes the minimum $500,000.00 investment for each pending petition.)"

It is undeniable that Regional centers offer measly returns and don't create as many jobs as direct investment jobs. The fact is, more investors will be attracted to the EB-5 visa category, especially when they realize that it is actually very easy to earn solid profits while getting a green card under EB-5 visa. More importantly, the US economy will benefit significantly if the EB-5 visa program only has direct investments, as the investor has to create 10 jobs in order to prove eligibility to stay or alternatively preserve 10 jobs in a failing business.

As a Business Broker and Adviser, it is my job to help my clients create those jobs in a profitable manner in order to help them get their green cards PROFITABLY and SAFELY, because I benefit only if my clients benefit.

EB-5 visa investors need to remember that the ONLY safe way to get a permanent green card in the EB-5 visa category is by investing in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses. At present, there is very little chance of either of the regional center extension bills being written into law due to stiff Congressional and law enforcement opposition.

Some of the important reasons that EB-5 visa investors should ALWAYS choose Genuine Direct Investment Businesses and avoid regional centers are:

1.    In a Genuine Direct Investment Business, it is quite unusual to encounter fraud or conflict of interest. This alone is THE biggest reason why EB-5 visa investors usually experience capital loss if they opt for regional centers or unsafe Direct Investments (such as Voodoo BBQ or Marcos Pizza), while those who opt for Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually NEVER experience capital loss.

2.    EB-5 visa investors who choose Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually earn annual ROI of 15% to 40%, while those who select regional centers usually earn 0-2% annual ROI.

3.  Genuine Direct Investment Businesses offer easy exit strategies to EB-5 visa investors while those who invest in regional centers see TERRIBLE exit strategies.

4.    Regional Centers usually commit securities fraud and securities law violations while this is usually unheard of in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses.

5.    EB-5 visa investors usually get capital gains if they invest in a Genuine Direct Investment Business and almost NEVER get capital gains if they invest in a regional center.

6.    EB-5 visa investors in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually see faster processing and approval of their petitions, while it takes much longer for EB-5 visa investors to get their immigrant visa through regional centers.

7.    EB-5 visa investors in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses have a higher chance of getting their permanent green card, while those who opt for regional centers have a lower chance of getting their green card. 

 If you are a business owner or high net worth individual interested in migrating to the US without getting cheated, please contact us for a free consultation.

We offer a turnkey solution and have a 100% fee refund guarantee if a client is denied due to our negligence or incompetence.

For more information, please contact: 

Mohammed Shaikh, MBA (Accounting), CFE, Licensed Business & RE Broker (CA & FL) 

Phone: +1 407 535 0616
Online: http://www.smartbusinessbroker.com

GAO Audit report means that current and future bills (to be introduced by Issa and Goodlatte) to renew regional centers in the EB-5 visa program are doomed to fail.

I just read an article at http://politicalnews.me/?id=34931&keys=LACK-OVERSIGHT-REGIONAL-CENTER which shows that as expected (and predicted by me since January 2015), the GAO Audit Report on the EB-5 visa program is quite damaging and makes it impossible for the current and planned bills to be introduced by Issa and / or Goodlatte to be written into law. It is quite sad to see politicians receiving money from desperate trade associations knowing that the politicians can't possibly deliver any results.

It is expected that this report shall make a lot harder for HR 616 and HR 3370 to pass, and as it is, GovTrack showed that both bills had no chance of passage. See https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/114/hr616 and https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/114/hr3370 to get a realistic assessment of each bills chance of passage, which is NONE!

So far, it looks very likely that regional centers shall expire in 6 weeks, and after that only Direct Investment Businesses shall be available as a choice for EB-5 visa investors.

Another major development that may kill the regional center program (which relies heavily on indirect job creation) is a lobbying effort by http://www.maj-a.us/, which was created by the promoters of E3 Investment Group, Marcos Pizza and Voodoo BBQ, etc. They're lobbying Congress to eliminate the indirect job creation category altogether, which would lead to the automatic end of all regional centers, as regional centers are unable to prove even 30% direct job creation. I personally don't think very highly of E3 investment group, Marcos Pizza or Voodoo BBQ due to the fact that I believe the promoters of E3 and Voodoo engaged in conflict of interest, and the Indian marketer of Marcos Pizza may potentially be committing fraud. However, I do agree with them that there are plenty of direct job creation opportunities, due to which the indirect job creation rule should be eliminated from the EB-5 visa program.

From an analytical perspective, the ONLY potential bill that MAY succeed in temporarily renewing the regional center program is S 1501, as HR 616 and HR 3370 seem to have no chance of passage. However, the regional center industry is actively opposing S. 1501, which means that there may potentially be a chance that the regional center program will expire in September 2015, and Direct Investment is probably going to be the only option for EB-5 visa investors.

EB-5 visa investors need to remember that the ONLY safe way to get a permanent green card in the EB-5 visa category is by investing in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses. At present, there is very little chance of either of the regional center extension bills being written into law due to stiff Congressional and law enforcement opposition.

Some of the important reasons that EB-5 visa investors should ALWAYS choose Genuine Direct Investment Businesses and avoid regional centers are:

1.    In a Genuine Direct Investment Business, it is quite unusual to encounter fraud or conflict of interest. This alone is THE biggest reason why EB-5 visa investors usually experience capital loss if they opt for regional centers or unsafe Direct Investments (such as Voodoo BBQ or Marcos Pizza), while those who opt for Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually NEVER experience capital loss.

2.    EB-5 visa investors who choose Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually earn annual ROI of 15% to 40%, while those who select regional centers usually earn 0-2% annual ROI.

3.  Genuine Direct Investment Businesses offer easy exit strategies to EB-5 visa investors while those who invest in regional centers see TERRIBLE exit strategies.

4.    Regional Centers usually commit securities fraud and securities law violations while this is usually unheard of in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses.

5.    EB-5 visa investors usually get capital gains if they invest in a Genuine Direct Investment Business and almost NEVER get capital gains if they invest in a regional center.

6.    EB-5 visa investors in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses usually see faster processing and approval of their petitions, while it takes much longer for EB-5 visa investors to get their immigrant visa through regional centers.

7.    EB-5 visa investors in Genuine Direct Investment Businesses have a higher chance of getting their permanent green card, while those who opt for regional centers have a lower chance of getting their green card. 

 If you are a business owner or high net worth individual interested in migrating to the US without getting cheated, please contact us for a free consultation.

We offer a turnkey solution and have a 100% fee refund guarantee if a client is denied due to our negligence or incompetence.

For more information, please contact: 

Mohammed Shaikh, MBA (Accounting), CFE, Licensed Business & RE Broker (CA & FL) 

Phone: +1 407 535 0616
Online: http://www.smartbusinessbroker.com